Date: June 21, 2021
Greetings Sisters and Brothers at Extendicare,
Your Extendicare Bargaining Committee met on Friday June 11, 2021. The committee membership has changed. The members now are Lynette Pinfold – Moose Jaw unit chair; Colleen Watson – Elmview unit chair; Lisa Virtue – Sunset unit chair; Marlene Thomson – Parkside unit chair and Lori Klus – Preston unit chair. Union representatives are Tracy Goodheart and Katelyn Almen. Chief spokesperson will be Bob Laurie, director of Contract Bargaining & Enforcement for SEIU-West.
As you all know, there has been considerable delay in commencing Extendicare collective bargaining. First, Extendicare bargaining traditionally commences after the conclusion of SAHO collective bargaining, as the SEIU-West/SAHO negotiations set the pattern for Extendicare monetary increases. SAHO bargaining took an extraordinarily long period of time to conclude. As well, the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted normal operations at Extendicare facilities throughout the province. Extendicare management focused all of their resources on trying to deal with the pandemic and the negative effects it had upon the residents and staff in all of their facilities. As a consequence, there was no time for anyone to attend bargaining sessions.
We have set August 31, September 1 and 2, 2021 as our dates to commence bargaining. Your bargaining committee will be sending out a short survey for you to identify your bargaining issues now, and for you to provide comments on the issues the committee has identified. As well, we will make available the SAHO tentative agreement document so you can see what changes have been made with respect to compensation and other matters. One of the most significant changes is the way in which seniority is calculated for SEIU-West members who work for the Saskatchewan Health Authority (SHA). We will be asking for your opinions on this change.
Through the survey, and through virtual membership meetings, the bargaining committee will develop a proposal package which we will table at the commencement of negotiations.
As always, we welcome our members’ questions and comments as we build our bargaining proposal package and get ready for bargaining. We encourage you to contact the MRC at 1-888-999-7348 ext. 2298 to ask any further questions.
Please watch for updates on SEIUWEST.ca.
You can also follow our Facebook and Twitter feeds.
In Solidarity,
Your SEIU-West Extendicare Provincial Bargaining Committee:Preston Extendicare: Lori Klus • Parkside Extendicare: Marlene Thomson • Elmview Extendicare: Colleen Watson • Sunset Extendicare: Lisa Virtue • Moose Jaw Extendicare: Linette Pinfold • Staff: Bob Laurie (Dir. of Bargaining and Contract Enforcement); Tracy Goodheart; Katelyn Almen (Staff Representatives)
To download a printable PDF copy of this update please click here.
Date: January 6, 2022
Greetings Brothers and Sisters:
The SEIU-West members who work at Extendicare Canada’s Elmview, Preston, Moose Jaw, Parkside, and Sunset facilities have voted in favour of the tentative agreement by 85.6%.
Date: December 22, 2021
Greetings Sisters and Brothers,
The following are some questions and answers about the Extendicare Tentative Agreement (TA). These arose during the four information meetings held on Zoom on December 20 and 21.
Date: December 17, 2021
Greetings Sisters and Brothers,
As announced in Bargaining Update No. 4 (December 9, 2021) your SEIU-West Extendicare Bargaining Committee met with the Employer on December 7 and 8, 2021. After and were able to reach a tentative agreement that we are prepared to share with the membership.
The following update provides further details about:
Date: December 9, 2021
Greetings Sisters and Brothers,
Your Extendicare Bargaining Committee has met with the Employer and has reached a memorandum of settlement.
SEIU-West members who work for the five Extendicare facilities in Saskatchewan – Elmview, Moose Jaw, Parkside, Preston, and Sunset – are invited to join President Barbara Cape and Director of Contract Bargaining and Enforcement Bob Laurie for an update on bargaining and the transition to the Saskatchewan Health Authority (SHC).
Date: November 1, 2021
Greetings Sisters and Brothers,
Finally, your Extendicare Bargaining Committee has met with the Employer to commence bargaining.
SEIU-West members at Extendicare:
We’ve all heard the announcement that the Saskatchewan Health Authority (SHA) is taking over the Extendicare (ECI) five long-term care homes in Saskatchewan. We know that that announcement has created a lot of additional stress and anxiety in the workforce already worn out through COVID. Now, not knowing what will happen in this transition is one of the greatest stressors of all.
SEIU-West members who work at Elmview, Moose Jaw, Parkside, Preston, and Sunset Extendicare facilities, please return your completed survey to your Unit Chairperson BY FRIDAY AUGUST 20, 2021!